Working Knowledge

Patagonia

Host Archana Ram explores the foundational nature of knowledge, and asks the questions that matter about our relationship with each other and the natural world. How are lessons passed through generations to help us feel at home? What barriers prevent us from acquiring natural wisdom? How can we adapt in the face of a rapidly changing climate? And so much more. Knowledge acts as a vessel; it must be shared, kept, evolved, and passed on. Please join us at Patagonia Stories.

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Our Editor's Take

Patagonia Stories is an outdoor pursuits podcast from the Patagonia brand. Anyone into mountain climbing, river rafting, or other outdoor activities is sure to be familiar with Patagonia. This sustainable brand has been a favorite of the outdoor community for many years.

But what does the Patagonia Stories podcast have to do with the clothing line? To understand that, one must first understand the company's mission statement. Patagonia sells clothes that people wear to explore wild places. As such, the company seeks to protect those wild places for future generations. Patagonia offers recycled products and the option to shop for their gear secondhand. They also have a repair guide and support to help extend the life of a garment. In its ads, the brand tells people not to buy what they don't need. But more than reducing consumption, the company promotes environmental activism. It encourages its customers to get involved in politics to protect the planet. It also influenced other apparel brands to embrace circular fashion. To top it off, in 2022, founder Yvon Chouinard made a commitment. He said that any revenue that he doesn't put back into the company, he will donate to fight climate change.

The podcast Patagonia Stories continues the company's commitment to the environment. It does so by sharing stories of people and communities connecting to nature. The podcast host, Archana Ram, also has a personal connection to the wilderness. The journalist has a long career reporting about travel, food, health, and fashion. However, in 2011, she decided she'd had enough of the red carpet and wanted to go on an adventure. This prompted a 13-month backpacking trip along South America, Hawaii, and Asia. She documented her travel in her blog New York to Nomad.

Ram's nomadic past comes across in her reporting on Patagonia Stories. In every episode, she reveals how wondrous nature can be and how much more there is yet to discover. Ram's interviews also include atmospheric nature sounds that further immerse listeners in the stories told. Fans of the outdoors may enjoy this podcast.

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Society & CultureSociety & Culture
DocumentaryDocumentary
Start Here
Quiet Knowledge
Jan 5 2023
Quiet Knowledge
What can we learn from nature when we pause to look and listen? In this episode, writer and American Sign Language interpreter Justin Maurer shares how being an interpreter for his deaf mom led to forming a punk band, presenting at the Oscars and seeking out one of the quietest places in the world. We also interview Nancy Bockino, a forest ecologist and avalanche professional who is working to restore an entire ecosystem by saving the whitebark pine. At the Archives, Val and Terri explain how Yvon Chouinard’s worn out craghopper shorts became the seed for Patagonia clothing. Tune in for a new episode of Patagonia Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Watch Silence Isn’t Silent: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/episode-4-silence-isnt-silent/video-124188.html Read One for the Grove: https://www.patagonia.com/mx/stories/one-for-the-grove/story-124185.html

Episodes

Quiet Knowledge
Jan 5 2023
Quiet Knowledge
What can we learn from nature when we pause to look and listen? In this episode, writer and American Sign Language interpreter Justin Maurer shares how being an interpreter for his deaf mom led to forming a punk band, presenting at the Oscars and seeking out one of the quietest places in the world. We also interview Nancy Bockino, a forest ecologist and avalanche professional who is working to restore an entire ecosystem by saving the whitebark pine. At the Archives, Val and Terri explain how Yvon Chouinard’s worn out craghopper shorts became the seed for Patagonia clothing. Tune in for a new episode of Patagonia Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Watch Silence Isn’t Silent: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/episode-4-silence-isnt-silent/video-124188.html Read One for the Grove: https://www.patagonia.com/mx/stories/one-for-the-grove/story-124185.html
Collaborative Knowledge
Dec 29 2022
Collaborative Knowledge
What can we learn from collaboration in the natural world? In this episode, journalist Kristin Ohlson, author of the new book Sweet in Tooth and Claw, explains how nature is more collaborative than competitive and what those lessons can teach us about building more connected communities. We also interview professional snowboarder and filmmaker Tamo Campos and producer Rhoda Quock about making their film Klabona Keepers to help save the Sacred Headwaters in British Columbia. At the Patagonia Archives, Val and Terri talk about that one time Patagonia made stuffed animals. Tune in for a new episode of Patagonia Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Read and listen to excerpts of Sweet in Tooth and Claw: https://www.patagonia.com/mx/stories/sweet-in-tooth-and-claw/story-123959.html Watch clips from Klabona Keepers: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/the-klabona-keepers/story-128589.html
Accessible Knowledge
Dec 22 2022
Accessible Knowledge
What barriers keep us from experiencing nature? In this episode, we share stories of people who are building access to the outdoors. First, we go on a run with Kiko and Kyra Sweeney in Mazanita, Oregon. As a blind runner, Kyra explains how the sport hasn’t always been accessible to her and why being part of a family of runners has changed that. We also hear from journalist Sofia Arredondo about Raúl Revilla Quiroz, one of the fathers of Mexican rock climbing who made his own gear back in the 1940s and 1950s and helped establish a tight-knit climbing community in the region. At the Patagonia Archives, Terri shares the story of one of her favorite items—a $9 piece of climbing gear that made its way from Yvon Chouinard’s car back in 1966 to our headquarters 40 years later. Tune in for a new episode of Patagonia Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Read Running the Coast: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/running-the-coast/story-127846.html Read The Maestro: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/the-maestro/story-125735.html
Artistic Knowledge
Dec 15 2022
Artistic Knowledge
How can art build a connection to nature? What lessons can we learn through song, images and writing? In this episode, we interview musical duo The Local Honeys about how their home landscape of Kentucky and the coal mining industry have shaped their communities and music. We also talk with Cameron Keller Scott, a fly fishing guide, teacher and poet. His writing dives into the secrets that rivers keep and the contradictions of loving a sport that can impact those precious ecosystems. At the Patagonia Archives, Val and Terri give us a peek at Patagonia's pattern making process (try saying that five times fast). Tune in for a new episode of Patagonia Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Watch Dying to Make a Living: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/episode-3-dying-to-make-a-living/video-124194.html Read and listen to Cameron Keller Scott read an excerpt from A River’s Own Name: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/a-rivers-own-name/story-124149.html
Resilient Knowledge
Dec 8 2022
Resilient Knowledge
How do we establish deeper connections to landscapes and our communities as we prepare for an uncertain future? In this episode, we interview reporter Joel Caldwell about visiting ecosystem restoration camps in California and the people working to rewild degraded landscapes. We also hear from Cheyenne River Sioux member Christopher White Eagle on how he’s reconnecting Native kids to their heritage through traditional buffalo hunts on the plains of South Dakota. Tune in for a new episode of Patagonia Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Read Restoring Paradise about ecosystem restoration camps: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/restoring-paradise/story-125867.html Watch The Hunt: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/episode-1-the-hunt/video-126188.html
Intergenerational Knowledge
Dec 1 2022
Intergenerational Knowledge
What lessons are passed down through generations that can help us feel at home, both mentally and physically? In this episode, we explore the power of mentorship through a conversation between queer climbers Lor Sabourin and Madaleine Sorkin. We also travel to the Salish Sea to hear about three generations of women who are fighting against the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion to save the resident orcas and the livelihoods of the coast Salish people. Join us for Patagonia Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Read Queer Climbing Mentorship: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/queering-climb-mentorship/story-123496.html Watch We Are the Water: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/episode-6-we-are-the-water/video-123950.html
Coming Soon: Patagonia Stories
Nov 17 2022
Coming Soon: Patagonia Stories
This December, we’re excited to launch our new podcast, Patagonia Stories. In each episode, host Archana Ram will explore how we gather knowledge and ask questions about our relationship to each other and the natural world. Questions like, how are lessons passed down through generations to help us feel at home? What barriers prevent us from acquiring natural wisdom? How can we adapt in the face of a rapidly changing climate? There’s so much more to come. Join us for the first season of Patagonia Stories wherever you get your podcasts.